Book review - Vidal novel #1 - "Williwaw" by Gore Vidal

Would never have read it if it hadn't been for the fact I'm trying to get through all of Vidal. This is a pretty good book, very accomplished from one so young. Apart from the fact it was Vidal's debut, the chief attraction is the unusual setting: a shipping route out on the Aleutians, full of rough seas, skanky bars and wind. This was the theatre of war Charlton Heston served in - I wonder if they ever met?There are two really good moments: the description of the storm, which is first rate, and the death of one of the crew members (this literally made me gasp). You wish there was a little more plot - maybe a bit more of a disaster (i.e. people in lifeboats) or a more thorough investigation of the death. But an assured work